Posted on 2014 Dec 18th
The Fact is: Safety Certified Pedestrian Reflectors can save Children’s lives.
Published September 10, 2010
B.C. Entreprenuer AnnSofie Haglund is now launching a campaign to get this CE safety certified product into Elementary Schools across B.C. and the rest of Canada.
A CORPORATE SPONSOR IS NEEDED TO HELP THE INITIATIVE SUCCEED
Haglund is not just a business owner; she is also the mother of a 2 year old child. Haglund’s company, C Me Pedestrian Reflectors/Pedestrianreflectors.com, is hoping to raise the profile of the high quality reflectors because of a dedication and passion to help protect children and all other pedestrians and cyclists. There are other types of “reflectors” sold by the promotional products industry, however, they may NOT be true reflectors as they are NOT certified and do NOT need to pass any reflectivity requirements. It is important to be aware of the difference.
Haglund explains:
THESE SAFETY REFLECTORS HAVE BEEN USED IN SCANDINAVIA FOR ABOUT 40 YEARS ALREADY, THEY HAVE A PROVEN TRACK RECORD. THIS PRODUCT IS SO INEXPENSIVE…YET SO EFFECTIVE. WHEN WORN AT EARLY DAWN, DUSK OR IN THE DARK, IT GIVES THE PEDESTRIAN “AND” THE MOTORIST A CHANCE TO AVOID DISASTER…
Haglund’s campaign was featured on the Global B.C. Morning News, in the Kelowna Courier, and is soon to be featured in other publications in BC and across Canada. She is approaching School Boards in B.C., and interest and excitement is growing. But, her company also needs safety and socially conscious corporate sponsors to get on board and attach their logo to the reflectors in order for the Elementary School initiative to succeed.
Haglund hopes to model her school campaign after the hugely successful Cats’ Eyes for Kids program in the U.K.. With corporate support from the National Building Authority – More that 12 million reflectors have been distributed to Primary aged children there in the past decade. The incidence of child pedestrian injury and death has decreased by as much as 59%. More info on the Cats’ Eye Program click here.
The CE certified and Safety Rated reflectors have also been given the support of the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, and SickKids/Safekids Canada.
Do you know the “Hard Facts”?
- The chance of being struck and killed as a pedestrian is 11 times greater after dark. – The US National Safety Council
- 8 out of 10 drivers who struck people at night never even saw them – Indiana State police Reports
- More children between the ages 5 – 14 die as a result of being struck by a motor vehicle than from any other cause – natural or accidental. – The National Safety Council
- Studies have proven that the risk of being hit by a motorist in the dark is eight times “lower” when wearing a safety reflector. – Federal Highway Administration
- In 2007 in BC alone, there were 1861 collisions involving pedestrians. There were 2010 injured or killed (including the occupants of the motor vehicle), with pedestrians accounting for 96.6% of the victims. – ICBC Road Safety Research
THINK ABOUT THIS SCENARIO
A car traveling at a speed of 80 km/h moves 22 meters per second. The average reaction time is one second. The physical response takes another second. In this time the car has already traveled 44 meters. On average, a pedestrian without a reflector can be seen at a distance of 30 meters with dipped lights. This leaves the driver with only 1.3 seconds of time to react and respond. With a CE certified safety pedestrian reflector you have a driver’s attention from over 150 meters. This means that the driver has almost seven seconds to react and pass the pedestrian safely.
EXAMPLES OF PRODUCTS AVAILABLE
